IMPERIAL, Calif.  Not even the blaring roars from soaring Blue Angels could drown out the unmistakable sounds of pheasants flushed from cover by talented hunting dogs here in Imperial Valley, California’s breadbasket, the Midwest with a tan.

Military jets, shotgun blasts, ah yes, the sounds of freedom.

I joined Don White of La Mesa and Doug Streed of Ramona recently on a pheasant hunt organized by Mendel Woodland of California Pheasant Hunts. Woodland’s appreciation for pheasants borders obsession, or probably tops it.

Two to three days a week, Woodland can be found at Bass Pro Shops in Corona, promoting his Imperial Valley hunts.

I believe it. One of the things Woodland shared is that he wants to trade out a pheasant hunt for a ride with the Blue Angels. I’m sure he’ll succeed. They fly above his fields and eat lunch in town.

Woodland leases his acreage here from Ryan Rothfleisch. I’ve known Ryan since his younger days as a hunter in Julian, but he passed me long ago as a deer hunter, businessman and humanitarian. He recently did a second tour in Haiti with a great friend of mine, Scott Cannon. They did America’s usual great work in Haiti. Meantime, Rothfleisch’s land served up pheasants for hunters needing a bird fix after the regular season ended. Call this winter ball for hunters.

“The loss of habitat down here and the huge dropoff in wild pheasants inspired me to start this program,” Woodland said. “I’m hoping they establish here. We’d also like to get Gambel’s quail here, too. The plan is to put in milo and sunflower and really boost the area for birds.”

Streed and White were impressed with the hunt and promised to return. So was I, and pheasant hunting is down the list of my favorite hunts.

For me, the difference was hunting with pointing dogs like Streed’s Drake and White’s Cody. Both are Vizslas, just incredible dogs.

“When you’re on a good point there’s nothing like it in bird hunting,” Woodland said.

Drake and Cody were amazing at finding birds and pointing them out so we could get in position to hunt.

“Cody is a little amped up from hunting ducks, so it’s going to take him a while to transition to pheasants,” White said early on when Cody flushed a bird beyond shotgun range.

After a long deer season, I know how Cody felt.

On March 3 Streed will host his annual and very successful San Diego Junior Pheasant Hunt.

“One of the questions I always get at the hunt is where the parents can take their kids pheasant hunting after our hunt,” Streed said. “This will be a great option for them and anyone who wants to hunt pheasants after the season ends.”

Woodland will plant birds until mid-April. For information about Woodland’s pheasant hunts, check www.capheasanthunts.com or call him at (626) 255-1422.